A Sting In Her Heart
by jazztasticness
Summary: Stigma in Pureblood families has changed little since the war. One young girl is suffering the full force of her family's opinions. But can Scorpius help her find happiness? Follows epilogue, Scorp/OC, please R R! Rating for scenes of violence. Disc: I do own Harry Potter. I have the box set and everything!
1. Chapter 1

Scorpius Malfoy was minding his own business in the Slytherin Common Room late one Tuesday night in September. It was the beginning of his third year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, and his teachers had really piled on the work. He was feverishly poring over his Potions textbook in a vain attempt to finish his essay before first period.

He heard a commotion coming from the girl's dormitories. A very heated discussion, it sounded like. Curiosity took over him and he went to the bottom of the stairs to listen, and just as he poked his head through the arch way, another face met his.

"Meep", said the small face, and immediately after followed some crunching footsteps as someone charged down the staircase. The face emerged fully and its owner bolted into the common room and hid behind the sofa.

The owner of the heavy feet also emerged; Scorpius pressed himself against the wall in the hopes of not being seen. It was Pandora Nightingale, affectionately named "Panda" by her closest friends, but there was nothing cute and cuddly about this oversized fourth year.

"And you can sleep down here if you won't come out and face me like a proper Slytherin should!" she yelled. After waiting a few seconds for a response, Pandora huffed and turned on her heel, "Stupid sister."

_Sister? _Thought Scorpius, that must mean the small girl was little Avalon Nightingale, a first year. Everyone had laughed at Pandora that first week, after her weedy sister was sorted into Slytherin. There wasn't a malicious bone in the little girl's body; she would have made a splendid Hufflepuff. She was obviously not faring too well.

"Are you ok?" Scorpius asked the little girl.  
"Has she gone?" was the immediate response.  
"Yes... you're Avalon, right? Pandora's your sister?"  
"Unfortunately... are you that Malfoy boy? Scorpion?"  
"Scorpius, actually."  
"Sorry... well, at least you don't have much of a sting to you"  
"Not like your sister seems to anyway, what made her so angry?" he asked, still smiling from the little girl's pun on his name.  
"The girls in my dorm room laugh at me. They call me names. They say I'm not Slytherin. I went to Panda's dorm for a hug, but her friends laughed and she got really mad."

Scorpius patted Avalon's back as she let out a little sniffle. He imagined how his father would jeer at him for being such a wet blanket and trying to comfort her, but he was not his father's son. He went to the closet and pulled out a thick blanket. It was old and frayed, but it would certainly serve a purpose for the little girl.

"Well, come on then. Here you go," he said, gesturing to the sofa he had been sat at and holding out the blanket. "You might as well make yourself comfortable and get a few hours rest."

The girl nodded and curled up at the opposite end of the sofa to Scorpius, and he went back to reading. He was pleased with how well he'd handled the snivelling eleven year old, as young children were not exactly his forte. Scorpius thought about his own first weeks at Hogwarts. The older Slytherins had practically bowed down to him, many of them being raised as the grandchildren of Death Eaters. He had known many of them before even starting school, having met them on trips with his father and Grandfather. He knew for Avalon it would be much harder, not only was she puny, and soft-hearted, but she had her sister to match up to.

Scorpius watched the little girl from over his book. He knew she wasn't asleep. Her tiny body was curled into a ball and she was shivering. She was so little and lithe, he wondered how she got on at home, and if her parents were anything like Pandora. The Nightingales were purebloods, but they were hardly a well known family. Next to all the rich mansions and Death Eater genes, the Nightingales were pretty tame, and could trace their history through all the houses of Hogwarts. They were not strictly a Slytherin family, such as the Malfoys. Scorpius genuinely considered if the hat was just dumping siblings together. Albus Potter, of his own year group, had been placed into Gryffindor like all the other Weasleys and Potters of history, but he was a devil.

He scribbled away, finally getting to the closing paragraph of his essay and he could finally go to bed, even if it was coming close to four in the morning and he had to have eaten and be in class by nine. He closed his book at long last with a sigh of relief and got up to leave. He had just reached the archway to the boy's dormitories, but a small squeak caused him to turn around. Avalon.

"Please don't leave me down here alone"

Scorpius sighed, slightly frustrated, but took another blanket and lay down on the opposite sofa. He could always pretend a house elf had covered him up after finding him asleep. He didn't want the first year to suffer, but he didn't want kindness to damage his own reputation either.

Later that morning, he would discover that at least one of his concerns would be a losing battle.

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I'm currently writing the second chapter so be sure to subscribe if you enjoy it. I really appreciate reviews, I need the to keep going. Don't let me abandon this story! At the very least tell me if you're enjoying it or not.

Thanks so much for reading, Joey.


	2. Chapter 2

"Wake up, you brat, you're a laughing stock!" was the first thing Scorpius heard that morning.

Pandora was leaning over her sister and shouting directly in her face, coating her with spit. Avalon just sat there, head down, as if everything really was her fault. He felt a pang of guilt as he slipped out from his blanket and crept towards the boys' dormitories.

"You can hold it too, Malloy!"  
"It's Malfoy, Nightingale."  
"Not that it matters anyway! You're a shame to your family's name, and to the house of Slytherin. You're nothing more than a babysitter. You should take this brat and pack yourselves off to Hufflepuff. Or even worse, Gryffindor!"

"You take that back right now!" Scorpius demanded drawing his wand.  
"Why? You're upset because it's _true_?" She chortled and drew her own wand, moving into the middle of the common room for face Scorpius.  
"You really think you can beat me, Malloy?"

"Whoa, whoa, now break it up, don't make me get a teacher!" demanded a sixth year prefect. "We're all late for breakfast as it is, move along."

Scorpius and Pandora scowled at each other, and turned in mirrored huffs back to their dorms. He changed quickly and grabbed his bag before storming out of the dungeons to the Great Hall for breakfast, though he had little appetite. Almost immediately after he sat down, Avalon was by his side with nothing more than a glass of juice. He ignored her. He didn't even say a word as he got up and left for his Potions lesson.

He took this lesson sitting at the back of the class next to Albus Potter, as it had been the only seat remaining at the start of the year, with everyone else having paired up already, primarily to avoid them both. They were more different than even their fathers had been, but at least they weren't at each other's throats.

"You look awful," Albus jeered.  
"You wouldn't look so shiny yourself if you'd been up all night."  
"Did you do the essay?"  
"Barely, I finished it at four. I fell asleep in the common room, some house elf gave me a blanket."  
"Oh really?" Albus chuckled, "that's not what your house mates are saying. They say you slept down there all night on purpose, with a _girl_."

Scorpius harrumphed and looked towards the front of the class, ignoring his partner. He was already dreading the letter he knew he would receive from his father the next morning.

"Malfoy, homework?" asked Professor Stood in his monotonous tone.  
"Here, Sir," said Scorpius as he pulled the roll of parchment from his bag.  
Professor Stood unrolled the essay and briefly scanned it, "detention, Malfoy."  
"What? Why?" he said, taken aback with disbelief.  
"I set an assignment on the improper misuse of Polyjuice Potion, not about your love-life, Mr Malfoy," the Professor sneered as he handed back the parchment.

His essay was there all right, but underneath a badly drawn image of what was supposed to be himself and Avalon in a compromising position. He groaned inwardly, but at least he'd be able to copy his original work.

The next morning, just as expected, he received mail from his father.

"Dear Scorpius,

I am not quite as disgusted with you as you probably fear. However, I am still sickeningly disappointed in you. My dear friend Pansy tells me you have been canoodling with a first year, and not a very respectable one at that. You have until tomorrow to explain your actions. Do not disappoint."

He set to scribbling almost immediately.

"Dear Father,

I am sorry such vicious rumours have reached your ears so quickly. I assure you I have not been canoodling with anybody, let alone a first year. I bestowed an act of kindness upon a miserable first year, a fellow Slytherin at that, and the girl's very own sister chastised me for it.

Surely father, a Slytherin is a Slytherin?

Sincerely, Scorpius."

He had scowled all the way through his note and gave it to his father's bird with disdain. He hated the mock eloquence his family used. He hated the stigma his family still had to live up to, even though none of them even agreed with it. It was times like this he wished his Grandfather, Lucius, was dead and buried. They could not live peacefully until he was.

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Again, please review, I have sooo many ideas but they'll just never be put down unless I know people are enjoying it.


	3. Chapter 3

Scorpius was becoming increasingly irritated. She sat next to him at every meal, she sat next to him in the common room, and she followed him in the corridors. Neither of them had spoken a word to each other since the first time they'd met. Every time he would turn in her direction, even if he didn't have plans to speak to her, she would put her head down and he could see she would tense with fear.

Even the Slytherins who had initially laughed at him for his little shadow didn't have the heart to make an obviously scared eleven year old cry, and they began to ignore her and just interact with Scorpius as they always had done. Pandora was glaring more viciously every day.

Scorpius returned from the hospital wing on a Friday evening in October. It was the day before the first Quidditch match of the season he had come down with an awful stomach bug and had been put on bed rest for the weekend. He harrumphed as he dragged himself into bed.

He awoke late the next morning. The match was well underway by now and he was alone. He made his way to the common room so he could warm himself by the fire. After sitting for a while, he heard a familiar commotion coming from the girls' dorm.

"You are a _disgrace_ - don't start blubbering – how _dare_ you behave like this in front of the entire school. Our parents are deeply ashamed they raised such a baby as a daughter. I, of course, am the pride and joy. Everyone in Slytherin looks up to me. Mum and Father always write to me saying how much they wished you were more like me. Don't you understand the status of our family? If we're ever going to be recognised for how truly great we are, we need to start acting like it. Or, at least, you do. You're the only thing holding us back!"

Scorpius heard a gut wrenching scream and the next thing he saw was tiny Avalon as she flew through the air and landed, thankfully, on a sofa. With the way she was holding her stomach, it was obvious Pandora had kicked her. Her huge weight against such a petite girl would be no match at all.

"I can't believe you would do such a thing!" Scorpius screamed at Pandora as she sauntered down the stairs, clearly ready to continue the fight.  
"She's my family; I can do what I like with her. She needs whipping into shape after all. But of course, you still fawn over your little lover girl."  
"She is **NOT** my lover girl! But even the darkest of Slytherins would never harm another. She's just a little girl!" Scorpius had stood up and was shouting in her face at this point. "You make her sound like property!"

They were interrupted by the sound of something splattering the floor, coming from Avalon's direction. She had vomited blood and was unconscious. Scorpius leapt to her side and picked up her limp body. She really was disturbingly light.

"It should be **YOU** doing this! She's your family and look what you've done! She's too little to take such an assault, you could kill her!"

Pandora only sneered as Scorpius whisked the girl off to the hospital wing. So what if she did die? Squibs didn't belong in pure blood families.

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Sorry if any of you are affected by the scene in this chapter. Please read and review.


	4. Chapter 4

"Help! I need help here!" Scorpius yelled as he ran through the corridors. "There's a student been hurt!"  
"What the devil are you shouting about? Oh... What happened?" said a seventh year prefect who had been volunteered to stay in the castle to watch over the pupils who decided not to watch the Quidditch.  
"She was kicked down the stairs, she threw up blood," said Scorpius gasping, pausing as Avalon threw up again, but at least she was conscious now.  
"Here, hold my arm!" cried the prefect.

Scorpius did just as he said and they were immediately zipped into the hospital wing.

"Madam Pomfrey! There's a first year been injured, she's hurt really bad!" called the prefect, who's named turned out to be Jeremy Doyle.

The aging woman dotted over and summoned Scorpius to lay her on the nearest bed. She closed the curtains around her and worked as she listened to Scorpius explain.

".. and, Miss, I don't think that's all. I think she must get treated similarly at home. She's always so scared. Her sister said she was a squib,"  
"Mr. Malfoy, I believe at least one of those facts is correct, and with how hard her magic is working to fight these injuries, I'd say she's had practise. All we can do is wait and hope she pulls through. I can't heal her while she's healing herself."

Scorpius sat in the girl's cubicle well into that night. Avalon had awoken once and he had reached for her hand to comfort her, but as she had a seizure she had gripped his hand tight, before falling unconscious again. He was literally tied to her bedside.

"Her parents have been owled. I've also floo-called the ministry. I'd recommend that you head to your dorm, Malfoy, they didn't sound too pleased," said the headmistress, Professor Mcgonagall, as she placed a hand on Scorpius's shoulder.  
"I can't, she's still got me."  
"Does she have any other friends?"  
"I don't think so. I defended her against her sister in the third week of school. She's done nothing but follow me round since then."

Scorpius could see through the open office door that someone had flooed in. It was a man and a woman's voices, most likely her parents. They sounded very calm and collected, almost professional. He felt disgusted they could be so calm when they're daughter was fighting for her life.

"Hello, son, my name is Harry Potter, I'm from the ministry. I don't normally deal with cases like this, but Aurors fight all evil, including evil parents. My colleague, Mrs. Hermione Weasley, here thought I would have more... experience handling this special case."

Scorpius looked up, shocked. Harry Potter? Hermione Granger? He'd heard things about them from his father, and of course his friend Albus, but he had never believed he would actually meet them. His Grandmother had raised him not to form judgements purely on another's last name. Harry had, after all, saved Draco during the war, just as Narcissa herself had saved Harry.

Hermione was scanning Avalon with her wand from head to toe, before pointing the wand at some parchment. The sheet rolled itself around the wand and lay twitching on the table as a dim blue light shone inside the roll. When it stopped, the sheet unrolled itself perfectly flat, covered in writing, all the information the wand had absorbed through reading Avalon.

Scorpius was certain he'd glimpsed the words "fracture" and "internal bleeding" several times on the list.

Hermione was unable to finish reading the list. Her eyes were filled with tears as she sat on the opposite side of Avalon's bed.  
"Let's just grateful she isn't a muggle child..." she whispered under her breath.

Scorpius shuddered to think what that must mean.

At 3am, Avalon had awoken, and managed to stay awake. Scorpius was permitted to leave for his dorm, but both Harry and Avalon insisted he stay.

"You never forget the first person who cared about you, Scorpius, it's unfair to leave her now," said Harry softly.

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Please guys, I'm still on a roll with this. I'm already planning a sequel! I know there are people reading this, I just don't know if they think it's any good! If you're enjoying it, subscribe, because I plan to post a lot more tonight.


	5. Chapter 5

Avalon and Scorpius were transferred to St. Mungo's. It was deemed safer for Avalon, no one could find her and no one could overcrowd her. Draco Malfoy was not impressed at this decision.

"But Father, they _hurt_ her. They hit her and kick her and starve her. Why shouldn't I be allowed to defend a fellow Slytherin? Why shouldn't I be allowed to defend anyone in such a state? Would you leave a little dying girl unaided? Didn't think so. No one with a soul would. Even Death Eaters have souls!" Scorpius had shouted at his father, who had eventually calmed down.

Malfoy Senior had turned to floo home from the hospital, when Harry Potter caught up with him.

"Mr. Malfoy!" he called, "Draco!"  
Malfoy turned slowly, "Yes?"  
"The other Nightingale girl, Pandora, she cannot stay in the school, and we cannot allow her home with such abusive parents. Could you suggest a family to take her in for the time being?"  
Draco huffed slightly and thought for a second before saying "We will take her. My mother always longed for a granddaughter and the other families will not be pleased with her behaviour. However much she deserves it, it would not be safe. Even such an abhorrent child as that does not need to meet a similar state as her sister."  
"Thank you for the offer. I will inform the Head Mistress who will bring Pandora to you at half past 8 this morning."

The two men nodded and parted. Harry was impressed how thoughtful Draco had become in his adulthood. He went back to Avalon's room where she had fallen asleep again. Scorpius had a curious look on his face.

"What did Mrs. Weasley mean when she said it was lucky she wasn't a muggle child?"  
"She's taken many injuries. Without magic to cure her, she would have died very young."  
"But if the magic cured her, why did they still think she was a squib?"  
"Son, there's just no explaining some people..."

He turned to leave but still saw a glimmer of a question in the boy's eye.

"How did that prefect get us to the hospital wing so fast?"  
"All prefects are able to apparate from anywhere on the school grounds to the hospital wing as long as they have passed their test. We were very lucky that Mr. Doyle was able."  
Scorpius nodded as Harry finally was able to leave.

He went back to Avalon's side where she was being fed by a nurse, too weak to use her arms yet, but she was sitting up at least.

"Do you mind if we talk alone?" Avalon asked the nurse.  
"Of course dear, here boy, don't give her too big a spoonful at once now," the nurse replied, handing the bowl of soup to Scorpius.

He sat down on the bed, spoon at the ready. She winced a little as she swallowed.

"Is it too hot?" Scorpius asked.  
"No, it stings a little in my throat is all," was her reply.  
"Stings, eh? Like me?"  
Avalon chuckled, and then her face set. "What's going to happen to my family?"  
"I don't know, kiddo. But you'll never be made to go back there."

She didn't respond. Did she really want to see them go to Azkaban? Probably, yes. But did she never want to see them again? Ever? Where would she go when she finished school? Who would she stay with over the holidays? She was scared. She was scared for everyone involved.

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I've started chapter six guys. I'm still unsure if I'm wasting my time with this or not.


	6. Chapter 6

Two weeks later and the pair had become quite close. Avalon was allowed to leave the hospital, but neither was allowed back to school because of the impending trial. They were in fact send to stay with the Potters. As Harry was the head of the investigation, he was deemed the one to keep the witnesses with the most un-biased view. Even Draco Malfoy could not argue that his son couldn't be in better hands.

Scorpius had even acquired a new nickname: Sting. Even Ginny Potter had taken to using it. As an act of revenge, Scorpius had dubbed Avalon as "Avalanche".

"Kids, lunch!" Molly Weasley called, who was their daily sitter while the Potters were working.

As usual, she had given Avalon a larger-than-average portion that she would never finish, always giving Scorpius her leftovers. However irritated Scorpius had been with Avalon at school, he was overjoyed at how much she had come on since that day in the common room. She was such a happy little girl. But she still wasn't very Slytherin. She was a rose in a bush full of thorns.

"Sting, will you still be my friend when we go back to school?" Avalon asked later that evening.  
"Why wouldn't I be?"  
"Well... you never spoke to me when I hung around you before..."  
"And _you_ didn't speak to me either."  
"But your friends...I annoy them."  
"If one friend cannot accept another friend of their friend, then they are not a friend at all."  
Avalon nodded. Scorpius patted her shoulder.  
"Don't worry. You'll never be hurt again."

Scorpius walked with Avalon to Lily Potter's room where she was staying and waited there as she got ready for bed in the adjoined bathroom. He sat on her bed when she had tucked herself in. She still had a concerned face.

"Are you still upset?"  
She nodded.  
"Mr Potter told me while you were in hospital that you never forget the first one to care about you. I think it's true to say that you never forget the first person you truly care about either."

Avalon could only grin.

"Sleep tight, Avalanche," said Scorpius as he made to go to his own room.  
"Wait... will tell me a story?"  
"What kind of story?"  
"A happy story."  
"All right."

Scorpius contemplated briefly, deciding on a Halloween theme considering it was only a week away.

"When I was 7, my Grandmother took me to Scotland for Halloween. She had a friend who'd had a bumper crop of pumpkins that year and we were invited up to choose one. We got to spend the whole week living in a muggle static caravan on her friend's back lawn. Father was horrified when he found out we were reduced to such standards. But anyway, I chose my pumpkin, the largest one I could push down the path. On our day to go home, we didn't have any floo powder, so we had to use side-along apparation. I was taken home first, and left to wait with my parents in the grander of our mansion's living rooms, and I insisted Gran went to get my precious pumpkin. She obliged, of course, and went back for it. When she returned, the transport had messed with the internals of my giant pumpkin and as soon as they were back in the living room, it exploded all over the expensive sofas and the rug, and best of all, my parents!" He couldn't help but laugh at the end of the tale.

Avalon giggled too and sat back grinning at her friend. She felt truly happy, and Scorpius felt so too. But was he feeling purely happiness? Simple joy at having such a good friend? He couldn't tell anymore. Lines were being blurred.

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Be aware that I also accept anonymous reviews. Seriously guys, any little helps!


	7. Chapter 7

Scorpius and Avalon were now being home-schooled by Mrs Weasley. They had missed the entirety of November. Though they were not slacking in anyway – they had weekly meetings with Professor Mcgonagall to make sure they were keeping up with their peers – Scorpius was beginning to miss his friends. The trial was scheduled for three weeks time, but in just two weeks the Potter children would be home for the holidays. Where would he and Avalon go?

He broached the subject with Harry that Saturday.

"Pandora is still with my parents. Where will I go for Christmas?" he asked.  
"You don't want to stay here for Christmas? I'm certain Albus and Lily won't mind sharing."  
"I wouldn't want to impose. Christmas is family time. I want to see my mother."  
"We'll be able to hire a suitable sitter for Pandora so your parents can come and see you here, that wouldn't be a problem. I'm sure you understand we can't possibly allow you in the same house as the elder Miss Nightingale. The risk you both pose to each other is far too great. "  
"You're trying to protect her? She tried to KILL Avalon!" Scorpius cried in outrage.  
"She's still just a child. A misguided child, yes, but what if someone had chosen not to protect your father? Do you think you'd be here now? She needs help, and it is my duty as a parent to help her."

Scorpius was horrified. Pandora needed to suffer just like Avalon had. He stood and bolted from the table, and Harry made no attempt to chase him. The boy would understand in a few years. What he would never understand were the choices his father and grandfather were currently making for him. Harry refused to be the one to pass on this news.

Meanwhile, Scorpius had hurled himself onto Avalon's bed, his head buried in his arms. He was a Slytherin, a Malfoy at that! How could he so such weakness in public? But it was Avalon's turn to comfort him. She was stronger every day, her scars were healing well, but she had the most concerning look of wisdom in her eyes – too deep for the average eleven year old. She lay her hand on his shoulder and felt his tension release.

"What did he say?" she coaxed gently.  
"You don't want to know..." he groaned, wiping his face.  
"I'd rather find out from you. This is our problem, after all."  
"He didn't say anything useful. He just assumed we'd be happy to share with Albus and Lily. I don't think you've even _met _Lily, have you?"  
She shook her head. "Where will I go when this is over? I don't want to stay here. They're nice and everything... but..."  
"But it's not the same, I know. "

Harry backed away from the door and sighed. He remembered his first year. The capacity for a young child to feel was unmatched. And his third year... he himself had been ripped away from a family member that year.

"Kids... can you come downstairs? We've got a... um... an important guest for dinner." Harry said calmly.  
Avalon nodded politely, Scorpius just grunted. Harry flinched.

They made their way downstairs, already able to hear a big booming voice coming from the dining room. There was a large, round chap sitting at the head of the table. Harry was comfortable laughing and joking with him, but they could see Ginny had slunk off to the side, clearly not impressed with his company.

"Scorpius, Avalon! Care to meet my cousin? This is Dudley Dursley, and we'd like to chat with you." Harry proclaimed joyfully, and Dudley smiled happily and waved.  
"Hullo there kids! Nice to meet you!" he said in a similar over-zealous manner to Harry.  
Avalon and Scorpius took their seats silently, a little amused and more than a little confused.

"So, has Harry told you anything about me?" Dudley asked over dinner.  
Both the children and Ginny shook their heads.  
"I'm a muggle, as you guys call it. I work as a social worker. I take care of families and children."  
Avalon nodded, Scorpius's brain was running over time. Was this going where he thought it was?  
"Harry has told me you kids will need a place to stay. I have a very big house..."  
"NO!" Scorpius almost screamed. "How do you think my father will feel about this? Living with a MUGGLE!"

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I'm thinking 3 more chapters should end this part of the story. Then there'll be a sequel.


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